Second Opinion

The Sell vs. Rent It Out Math: A Second Opinion on Becoming a Landlord in Las Vegas

By England Hart, "your second opinion" • February 19, 2026

"Why would I sell? I'll just rent it out." It's the most common thing homeowners say when they're ready to move but don't want to give up their property. The idea is seductive: keep the house, let someone else pay the mortgage, build equity, and collect passive income. It sounds like a no-brainer. It sounds like a path to wealth. For some people, it is. For most, it's the beginning of a stressful, expensive lesson in the reality of being a landlord.

The difference between the people who succeed and the people who suffer is one thing: the math. Not the napkin math. Not the "rent minus mortgage equals profit" math. The real, honest, all-in math that accounts for every cost, every risk, and every hour of your time. If you're weighing this decision, you need to run these numbers before you sign a lease with your first tenant. This is a companion piece to our full Sell, Stay, or Rent It Out decision framework.

The Napkin Math vs. The Real Math

Let's use a real-world Las Vegas example. You own a 3-bedroom home in a popular suburb. It's worth about $400,000, and you owe $200,000 on the mortgage. You could rent it for approximately $2,500 per month.

The Napkin Math (What Most People Do)

• Monthly Rent: $2,500
• Monthly Mortgage (PITI): $1,800
• "Profit": $700/month ($8,400/year)

This looks great on a napkin. But this calculation is missing about a dozen line items that will eat that $700 alive.

The Real Math (What Smart Investors Do)

Here's what the real monthly budget looks like. For a full breakdown of each of these costs, read our guide on the hidden costs of being a landlord.

• Monthly Rent: +$2,500
• Mortgage (PITI): -$1,800
• Vacancy Reserve (8%): -$200
• Maintenance Reserve (1% of value/yr): -$333
• Property Management (10%): -$250
• Capital Expenditure Reserve (roof, HVAC, etc.): -$150
• Real Cash Flow: -$233/month (-$2,796/year)

Read that again. After accounting for the real costs of owning and managing a rental property, your "profitable investment" is actually costing you $233 per month out of pocket. And this is in a good scenario with a paying tenant and no major surprises. One bad tenant or one major repair, and you're looking at a five-figure loss for the year.

The "But I'm Building Equity" Argument

This is the counterargument every aspiring landlord uses. "Sure, the monthly cash flow is thin (or negative), but I'm building equity! The tenant is paying down my mortgage, and the property is appreciating!" This is true, but it's an incomplete picture.

Yes, your tenant's rent payments are reducing your mortgage principal. But that equity is trapped. You can't spend it. You can't invest it elsewhere. It's locked inside a property that requires constant attention and carries significant risk. The only way to access that equity is to sell the property or take out a loan against it (which adds more debt and more monthly payments).

As for appreciation, Las Vegas real estate has historically appreciated, but it's not guaranteed. The market crashed in 2008, and many investors who were counting on appreciation were wiped out. Betting your financial future on appreciation is speculation, not investing.

The Opportunity Cost: What Else Could Your Equity Do?

This is the question most people never ask. If you sold the property and walked away with $175,000 in net equity (after selling costs), what could that money do for you?

• High-Yield Savings: At 4.5%, that's $7,875/year in truly passive, risk-free income.
• Index Fund: Historically, the S&P 500 returns about 10% annually. That's $17,500/year, with zero tenants and zero toilets.
• Down Payment on a New Home: That equity could fund a 20% down payment on a much nicer home for your family, eliminating PMI and giving you a lower monthly payment.

Compare those returns to the -$233/month your rental is generating. The opportunity cost of keeping your equity trapped in a rental property can be enormous. For a more detailed version of this analysis applied to existing landlords, read our guide on the math that actually matters.

The Honest Answer

Renting out your home can be a great financial move, but only if the math works. And for most homeowners in Las Vegas, the math is much tighter than they expect. The people who succeed as landlords are the ones who go in with their eyes open, with adequate reserves, and with a realistic budget that accounts for every cost.

If the math doesn't work, selling is not a failure. It's the smartest financial move you can make. It's choosing to deploy your capital where it generates the highest return with the least risk and stress.

Not sure which path is right for you? Submit your property to Rescue Home Offers for a free, no-obligation Second Opinion. We'll help you run the real numbers and give you a guaranteed cash offer so you can compare selling to renting with complete clarity. Stop guessing. Start calculating.